Batteries are used to power many types of toys and other products. Batteries may be used to power motors that turn wheels of toy cars and other vehicles, and to power transmitters and receivers of remote controlled toys. They may be used to provide power to actuators in toys that, for example, turn wheels or other components of a toy. In addition, many other consumer products (and non-consumer products) require battery power. The power in the batteries will drain as the toy is operated. When the power provided by a battery or group of batteries becomes too low to drive the toy or product, then the batteries must be replaced. Because batteries must be replaced periodically, it is advantageous that they be easily removed and installed in a toy or other product.
Battery clips (which may also be referred to as packs) are one approach to facilitating the removal and installation of batteries. A battery clip is a container specifically adapted to hold batteries in electrical contact with a toy or other product to which the clip is mounted. The current invention relates to a novel and unobvious removable battery clip.
Battery clips perform several functions, including providing a holding container for one or more batteries. Usually, a battery clip will have internal battery mounts to receive a selected number of batteries. The clip should allow for easy removal and replacement of batteries.
One of the primary functions of a battery clip is to provide a safe container for batteries, especially when the batteries and clip are attached to a toy. Safety is a paramount concern in designing components for toys. A battery clip must be itself safe, and must hold a group of batteries in a safe manner. For example, the clip should be sturdy and have no small parts that are removable or that easily break off. In addition, the clip should not have sharp edges that might cut a child. The clip should also hold the batteries in a toy such that the batteries are secure, not exposed to children, and minimize risks of electrical shorts.
Another function of a battery clip is to provide an electrical path between the batteries and the toy or other device (collectively referred to as a toy) to which the clip is attached. To provide this electrical path, electrical conductors are included in the battery clip that electrically connect the batteries, and external electrical connectors on the clip. Usually, the batteries are electrically arranged in series in the clip, and the external connectors of the clip contact with terminals on the first and last battery in the series.
A third function of a battery clip is to be removably attached to a toy. The mounting of the battery clip to the toy or other device must reliably align the external connectors of the clip to corresponding electrical connectors within the toy. The mount that attaches the clip to the toy must provide sufficient structural support for the clip to securely fasten the clip and batteries to the toy, as the toy is operated and played with. A further feature of the mount for the battery clip is that it should be easy to remove and install on the toy, especially considering that children and other untrained consumers will be replacing batteries. Other desirable functions and features of a battery back are that it be durable, inexpensive and simple to manufacture, be unobtrusive when attached to a toy and compact. Another requirement of a battery clip is that it be rugged and should not break even when subjected to drops, knocks and other wear and tear associated with toys and consumer products.
The functions and features that are desirable for a battery clip are often inconsistent with one another. For example, to make the clip be compact and unobtrusive is often at odds with making the clip easy to use and durable. In addition, the need for a reliable, safe and secure attachment between the clip and toy is at odds with mounting that is easily removed. For example, some prior battery clips have included screws that attach the clip to the toy, but screws require a screw driver and are not easily used by children and many consumers.
Battery clip should be inexpensive to manufacture, especially for those clips used with toys. Toys are sold in a notoriously-competitive market. Low cost manufacture of toys is often a critical requirement for a commercially successful toy. Battery clips should be very low cost to maintain the necessary low cost of manufacturing the toy. The cost of manufacturing the battery clip for a toy should be no more than a few U.S. cents. Included in this manufacturing costs are the costs associated with the materials, e.g., plastic and metal, the cost of plastic injection molding to form the casing of the battery clip and to form a lid for the clip, the cost of the metal stamp process to form the conductors, the cost of inserting the conductors in the casing, the cost of labeling the clip, the cost of adding fasteners, e.g., screws, to be used to hold the clip together and to mount the clip to the toy, the cost of hand labor to assemble the clip, and other costs, e.g., capital, and overhead.
A novel and unobvious battery clip has been developed that has an open-topped plastic container with receptacles for a plurality of batteries. The sidewalls of the containers have slotted latches that fit into matching grooves in the underbelly of the toy or product to which the battery clip is mounted. The sidewalls have support ribs that provide rigidity to the clip, strengthen the cantilevered ends of the latches, and form guide rails for the batteries. In addition, the container has recesses to receive stamped metal electrical connectors and that align the connectors with the terminal ends of batteries. Furthermore, the container has apertures for selected metal connectors to provide an electrical connection between the batteries and the electrical components of the toy or other product to which the clip is mounted.
The battery clip of the present invention provides several advantages over the prior art, including an unusually large battery holding area relative to the overall size of the clip. In particular, the sidewalls of the clip are relatively thin and the battery holding area in clip fills substantially the entire area within the sidewalls. Because of the extra space provided by the present invention, additional batteries may be inserted or a better arrangement of batteries may be provided as compared to prior battery clips. Moreover, substantially the entire volume of the battery clip can be devoted to holding batteries. This is an especially desirable feature of the present invention because it allows clips to be smaller, and for larger batteries, e.g., rechargeable batteries, to be used in toys which previously received only smaller sized batteries. Another feature of the clip that reduces the area of the clip is that as many as possible of the protruding features, such as the attachments needed to secure the metal connectors in the case and the battery mounts, are formed on the bottom of the casing, rather than on the sidewalls. Often, the footprint of the clip, i.e., the area within the perimeter of the sidewalls, is to be limited or is restricted by the design of the toy. Toy design may allow for greater flexibility in the height of the clip. By arranging as many protruding feature of the clip, e.g., attachments for metal connectors and battery mounts, on the bottom of the clip and not on the sidewalls, the footprint of the clip can be minimized, while only slightly increasing the height of the clip.
Simplicity of design is another advantage provided by the present inventive battery clip. For example, the casing for the battery clip is an open rectangle having four straight sidewalls, and a flat bottom. The upper edges of the sidewalls are straight to match a flat recessed surface in the underbelly of the toy. The upper edges of an opposite pair of the sidewalls are slotted to form the latches (also referred to as bosses) that attach the clip to the toy. The latches are flush with the sidewalls, and do not protrude from the sidewalls which assists in minimizing the volume of the clip. Other than the slotted latches, the sidewalls have few structures other than several straight ribs that provide rigidity to the thin sidewalls and at least two apertures for metal contacts.
The bottom of the casing has a simple and minimalist design. The bottom has a pair of serrated ribs to align the batteries within the case, and an arrangement of metal contact holders. The metal contact holders are adjacent the sidewalls. Each metal contact holder includes a raised plastic bracket on the bottom of the casing. Each bracket includes a bar that covers one or more slots in the bottom of the casing, and a pair of legs between the bar and the corresponding sidewall. The bar and covered slots receive metal tabs of a metal connector and the legs assist in aligning the connector in the bracket. The metal connector is further held in the bracket by a plastic tab formed by slots in the sidewall adjacent the bracket. This simple arrangement to hold a metal contact of a bracket, covered slots and sidewall tabs can be readily formed with the case during the plastic injection molding process.
Other advantages provided by the invention are safety and low cost of manufacture. The battery clip is safe because it is a single piece with no small removable components that might be swallowed by a child. In addition, the small components of the clip, e.g., bosses and metal connectors, are not removable and are specially designed to prevent removal or breakage. In addition, the casing for the battery clip is formed as one component using standard plastic injection molding techniques. The slotted latches, ribs and tabs of the sidewalls, and the brackets with covered slots in the floor of the casing are formed in a single split mold. In addition, the metal contacts may be made using standard metal stamping and bending processes. Moreover, the metal contacts can be mechanically inserted and snapped into place in the floor of the casing. Accordingly, the clip is safe and its manufacture is suited to low-cost manufacturing techniques.